Alonzo Davis
artist
dc
Alonzo J. Davis' career as an artist spans four decades. A native of Tuskegee, Alabama, Davis moved with his family to Los Angeles in his early teens. After acquiring an undergraduate degree at Pepperdine College he earned an MFA in Printmaking and Design at Otis Art Institute. Influenced early on by the assemblagists, Davis soon took wing and began to experiment with a variety of mediums, techniques and themes. At the suggestion of artist and former professor, Charles White, Davis began to produce prints and paintings in series. While he was inspired by travel to Africa, the Caribbean and American Southwest—the colors and patterns of the Pacific Rim cultures also seeped into Davis’ artwork. During the ‘70’s and early ‘80’s, Davis’ involvement in the California mural movement culminated with the 1984 Olympic Murals project. His Eye on ’84 (recently restored) is one of ten murals on the walls of the downtown Harbor Freeway. In 1987 Davis entered new territory literally and figuratively when he moved from Los Angeles to Sacramento, California. Fellowships in Hawaii and Texas inaugurated new bodies of work and led to job opportunities in academia--deanships at the San Antonio Art Institute and the Memphis College of Art. During this period his on-going Blanket Series of woven paintings—morphed into a series of installations. Among these were Christopher Columbus Did Not Discover America which incorporated light elements, rocks and arrows, and the Tar Paper Series, richly-textured organic forms that Davis “choreographed” onto large wall spaces. These works signaled a transition from 2-D to 3-D. Commissions to create public art for the Boston Subway, Atlanta International Airport, Galleria and the Memphis/ Shelby County Library in Tennessee indirectly led the way to his next large body of work, sculptural forms that he regards as paintings in the round. Bamboo insinuated its way into Davis’ work about fifteen years ago and he now has a number of series underway in this medium: Power Poles, Sky Ladders, Bamboo Constructions Passageways and the two newest, Series of Seven and Mensah Fetish Series. The American Bamboo Society presented him with the 2006 Award for Excellence in Using Bamboo for his bamboo construction, Judicial Balance, created for the Prince George’s Maryland County Courthouse in Upper Marlboro. A resident of Maryland for the past 13 years, Davis works out of a studio in Mount Rainier, Maryland. Among the venues in which his work has been exhibited in this area are the Museum of the Art of the Americas, Katzen Museum Sculpture Garden at American University, Washington, D.C. and The Brentwood Arts Exchange, Maryland.
